BART safety

The BART board of directors on Thursday is expected to decide if it wants to add community service officers to monitor safety on trains.

BART’s board of directors voted unanimously in favor of adding community service officers to monitor safety on trains with the purpose of employing so-called ambassadors to look out for “quality of life” issues on trains and across the transit system. Melissa Colorado reports.

The BART board of directors on Thursday is expected to decide if it wants to add community service officers to monitor safety on trains. Pete Suratos reports.

The BART board of directors on Thursday is expected to decide if it wants to add community service officers to monitor safety on trains. Pete Suratos reports.

The BART board of directors on Thursday is expected to decide if it wants to add community service officers to monitor safety on trains.

NBC Bay Area spent months riding BART trains across the Bay Area, at all hours, to investigate how a once renowned transportation network became one of the most dangerous in the country.

An analysis by the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit reveals BART has a higher rate of violent crime than transportation systems in New York City, Los Angeles, D.C., and Atlanta. The Investigative Unit spent months recording on BART to understand how a once renowned transportation system got off track and transformed into one of the most dangerous in the nation....

For months, the NBC Bay Area Investigative has sought to obtain BART surveillance videos that were used to close more than 100 criminal cases. BART has refused to release the fotage and faces allegations of lacking transparency in light of its record of withholding police reports and surveillance video. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban reports in Chapter 4 of DERAILED.

BART Interim Police Chief Ed Alvarez acknowledges his police force of roughly 170 officers is not large enough to adequately protect passengers. He hopes to hire about 100 additional officers over the next five years, but that is contingent on receiving significantly more funding for his department. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban reports in Chapter 3 of DERAILED.

An analysis by the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit reveals BART has a higher rate of violent crime than transportation systems in New York City, Los Angeles, D.C., and Atlanta. The Investigative Unit spent months recording on BART to understand how a once renowned transportation system got off track and transformed into one of the most dangerous in the nation....

Building the original BART system took five years and $1.6 billion. The transportation network was unveiled in the early 1970s with much fanfare, but in recent years, the agency has lost the public’s trust after a string of high profile passenger deaths. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban reports in Chapter 2 of DERAILED.

BART’s new General Manager Bob Powers has a long term safety plan to boost the agency’s police force by about 100 officers and install new barriers at each of BART’s 48 stations. But it’s unclear whether the agency will be able to secure the millions of dollars necessary to make those changes and protect passengers. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban...